Whether in Cupertino, Calif. or Curitiba, Brazil, cities are starting an aggressive move toward sustainability in the Americas. In this evolution, technology, citizen involvement and innovation will play a role transforming cities, Leon Kaye writes.
Brazil has been moving at a faster rate to become more sustainable because of its host role for the 2014 World Cup and 2016 Summer Olympics.
"Rio's government and business community are also funding the Morar Carioca architectural competition that will hire 30 architects to build healthy homes, schools, and clinics for the city's poorest 200,000 residents."
The US federal government on the other hand has been galvanized by architecture firms and technology companies to be more innovative.
"In Dallas, bcWorkshop, an architect firm, rebuilt a neighborhood, Congo Street, by deconstructing homes and with the salvaged materials, built new homes that maximized space while including energy-efficient features like solar panels."
"The push towards smarter building is occurring feverishly at the grass roots level, too. More architects are embracing the concept of humanitarian design, the convergence of cutting-edge architecture, sustainable or recycled materials, and mass scale that together allow the building of homes and community centers at an affordable price.
FULL STORY: New ideas for sustainable architecture in the Americas
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City of Albany
UCLA Lewis Center for Regional Policy Studies
Mpact (formerly Rail~Volution)
Chaddick Institute at DePaul University
City of Piedmont, CA
Great Falls Development Authority, Inc.
HUDs Office of Policy Development and Research